Shortcoings of Vinyl Windows in Sub-Zero Temperatures

21 July 2012
12:44 PM

Sunrise at	4:15 AM	in direction	32°	North-northeast
Sunset at	11:37 PM	in direction	327°	North-northwest

Civil Twilight all day

Vendors sell a lot of vinyl windows here in Alaska.  I find that interesting since in Colorado I was warned to not buy them.  Colorado's temperature fluctuations are not as extreme as here, but the window contractor I spoke with felt most certainly they would not withstand the temperature swings in that environment.  In Colorado, wide fluctuations are daily.  He suggested aluminum or steel clad wood for that region.

But, vinyl is warmer than plain metal, less expensive, and is readily available.  Most new houses are fitted with vinyl windows here in Fairbanks.  Yet, we have already replaced one large pane of glass in one of the windows in our living room.  Our living room ceiling extends to the top floor, open to a loft in one section of it.  Along the front wall, which faces south east, are four very large windows.  The two at floor level are 5' x 6'.  And now, condensation is forming in two more of our windows.  One window is a very large quadrilateral, shaped to fit the slope of the roof in the top story.  This is not an easy window to replace as we need a lift to reach it.  The window is heavy, complicating the removal and replacement from a lift platform.

The other is near where I am sitting right now.  As the condensation forms, mold forms with it and various colors begin to appear in between the panes.  As well as the formation of condensation, the vinyl windows do not close tightly after a few years.  Due to the expansion and contraction with our very wide temperature range between summer and winter, the weight of the window causes warpage.  We do not have a tight seal when the two windows are closed.  We no longer open them since we have several atrium doors that can be opened in summer, but I find the fact that we can't use the windows annoying.

So, I am in the market for new living room windows, at least.  I will consider replacing the top windows at some future point, but for now, simply removing these and getting fiberglass frames that are fully insulated around the frame and open inward will be an improvement.  I don't want the expense.  Who would?  But I also don't want the condensation, cold air leaks, and ultimate failures for opening and closing them.

There's always something.